mrhappyfrugal

Medellín, Colombia is one of the most fascinating places I’ve traveled to. Nested between the staggering mountains, this beautiful city is rich in culture, has a diverse community, and is very welcoming to anyone looking to visit or make Medellín their future home. You can tell the Medellín is bustling but the city has such a quaint, laid back, and easy going feel. It has become a featured location among travel enthusiasts, expats, and other nomadic types.

I went to Medellín with a friend who I have traveled all over the western hemisphere with. We love to visit new places and now that I’m married, I get to experience new destinations with Mrs. Happy Frugal.

After we arrived in Medellín, we made a friend at one of the local cafes who introduced us to his friend who does private tours of the Medellín region. Always nice to meet a friend of a friend. We met her the next day and we had an absolutely amazing time. She hooked us up with a great tour of some of the Medellín highlights and a couple of destinations off the beaten path.

Here are a few of my favorite activities we experienced in Medellín.

1. Parque Arvi

Parque Arvi is a beautiful nature preserve outside of Medellín. It’s a long but pleasant ride up the metro’s cable car but well worth the unbelievable views. It’s a family friendly park that offers a lot to see and do.
When I went, they had art projects and crafts for children. There were also many raw fruit stands that would make fresh juice or allow you to sample some of the exotic fruits Colombia has to offer.
There are nature trails for hiking and many spots for breathtaking views. It truly was a highlight of my trip.

2. Parque Explora

This science museum is a must see for anyone visiting Medellín. There are many exhibits to see and interact with. I made some friends at the hostel I was staying at and we all decided to go to the museum since it wasn’t too far from where we were staying and had great reviews. Once we got inside we were not disappointed. Along with the exhibits, science displays, and vivarium, there is an aquarium that boasts many indigenous species of fish. Watch out for the piranhas!

3. Plaza Botero

Fernando Botero is a famous artist and sculptor from Medellín. This plaza features 23 Botero sculptures and normally has street performers, fresh fruit stands, and hosts the wonderful Museo de Antioquia art museum. This plaza is a great place to hang out, drink coffee from one of the street cafes, and view some amazing art by a prolific artist.

4. Museo de Antioquia

Speaking of Botero, he has donated many of his art pieces to this museum. And it’s not just Botero art. The Museo de Antioquia features incredible pieces from other Colombian artists as well. Between the Plaza Botero and the Museo de Antioquia, you can spend several hours here taking in the rich history Colombia has to offer.

5. Laguna de Guatape

Okay, this isn’t in Medellín. In fact, it’s a couple of hours away, so it will probably be a full day trip but it is totally worth it. You can catch a bus, or find a tour group that will take you there. The Guatape region highlights lush, jungle-like vegetation, and beautiful bodies of water. It is also home to the Colombian national monument El Peñón de Guatapé. The large rock dome that overlooks Guatape. There are 740 steps to the top and boasts insane 360-degree views. Make sure you don’t miss this one.

6. Pablo Escobar’s Lake Mansion

You can’t leave Escobar off the list! The infamous drug lord owned many properties around Colombia and while we were in Guatapé, we took a boat out to his lake mansion. This was my favorite parts of the entire trip. Docking up to the island and exploring the ruins of a once immaculate home owned by one of the most notorious gangsters of all time was quite an experience. We walked through the shambled house and visualized what the property must have looked like in its prime. It was haunting to think Escobar himself walked the very halls we wandered through. A truly amazing experience that will not be soon forgotten.

I hope you enjoy this list and you get to visit the beautiful city of Medellín. It truly is a stunning destination.

It’s been a while. Since I could hold my head up high… Sorry about the Staind reference…

It’s been a busy summer for us and we’ve failed with our blog writing duties. Oh well, onward!

Here’s an update to what we’ve been up to lately

We are planning to sell our city home and move to the country and build a cabin that will be our new home. We might be crazy but we’re just tired of paying a huge mortgage. We got trapped by the glitz and glamour of buying a home that was larger than we needed and more than we could afford. But that’s America, right?

We love the convience of the city and enjoy our current home but we feel burdened with the financial size of our mortgage and the physical size of our home. We use the kitchen, living room, bedroom, and bathroom. The rest of the house is barely used and we feel like it’s wasted space. Why did we buy a large home with a huge mortgage? We thought we could afford it and were assured by friends and family that this is what we needed to make the next step in the great American dream.

We had just started learning about FI and we felt we were making a wise financial decision by purchasing a home. It was supposed to be a good investment. We kick ourselves for puchasing this home but we’ve learned valuable lessons and know it will be a small blip in the big picture.

We’ve been looking at different options for building a smaller home (not quite tiny) and we’ve settled on purchasing a cabin shell and finishing it out ourselves with the help of our friends and family. We figure with our back-of-the-envelope math that the cabin itself will cost around $30k total. There is the land price as well but that’s a huge difference from the price of our city home.

Currently, I work about 30 minutes from my job and this would tack on another 20-30 minutes by looking for land outside the city. That’s hard for a lot of people to comprehend but I get to work from home quite a bit and eventually I will try to work from home full-time. Even though it’s a long drive, we both believe it will be worth it as it will catapolt us closer to our FI goals. We figure we can pay the land (depending on our budget) and cabin build off within 5 years and be mortgage free!

We plan to buy land, sell our home by spring, move in with family, and build our new cabin! That’s a lot to take in and we know it will be a challenge but we have discovered this is what we’ve been wanting. The city is great, and it’s very convenient, but it will be a huge financial boost for us to move out and have the freedom to build a smaller home.

This is a super cheap meal that comes out to less than $1.50 a serving. I’m pretty sure it’s healthy too but I don’t know because I’m not a scientist.

In essence, toss everything into a pan and let it cook for like 30 minutes. You could even tweak this by adding in some vegetable or chicken stock and put it in a crockpot for a hearty stew!

To start, heat your pan medium-high and brush the surface with olive oil. Next, toss your favorite ground meat in the pan and start to separate the meat with your spatula. I’m using ground turkey but beef or chicken is typically used. You can also save on your budget and go meatless!

While the meat is still pink and starting to cook, I normally start seasoning with salt and pepper. Once the meat has completely changed color, I start to add in the rest of the seasoning. Don’t be afraid to go big and bold. The seasoning is what makes the dish. I usually go through a couple of rounds of seasoning, tasting as I go.

Next up, let’s add the diced tomatoes and green chiles. Drain half the can and toss the rest in the pan so the veggies and meat can get to mingling. But wait! Don’t forget about the beans and corn. They want to party too. Drain both cans entirely before adding to the pan. Turn the pan down to medium and start on the rice.

Bring your water to a boil and toss in your rice. Once boiling, turn down to low to simmer. I toss in a spoonful of butter to help keep from sticking. Let the rice cook covered for 15-20 minutes, or until done.

Toss the rice in the pan to get to know the rest of the gang. Mix together thoroughly and bring down to simmer. If it’s starting to look dry on the top, throw a couple of splashes of water in and let simmer for 10 minutes.

You’re done! Now you can spoon everything into some nice stackable bowls for an easy grab-and-go lunch. I make taco bowls almost every week for my lunches and somehow I don’t get tired of it. Maybe next time I’ll make a video. Easy, cheap, and tasty!

Optional

Instructions

Break up the ground meat into equal-size pieces as it cooks on medium-high and season with salt and pepper.

Once browned, toss the rest of the seasoning mix into the pan and mix thoroughly with the meat. This is also where I add lime and hot sauce.

In a separate pot, set your water to boil.

Once boiling, add your brown rice.

Bring the heat down to simmer and cover for 15-20 minutes or until done.

Add beans, corn, and tomatoes and chilies to the ground meat and mix thoroughly.

When the rice is done, drain any leftover liquid and add rice to the ground meat and vegetables.

Mix thoroughly (I'm saying that a lot but trust me) and set heat to low. I like to let everything simmer together for 5-10 minutes. If it starts to look dry, toss in a couple of small splashes of water.

This is one of those meals that I just can’t get tired of. It’s cheap, delicious, super easy to make and fills me up. It’s a great alternative to eating out every day for lunch. 🙂